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Lesson Plan

Geography & Animals: Amazon Rainforest Leafcutter Ants

Students will love learning about a tiny (yet very interesting!) animal in this rainforest-inspired lesson plan focusing on ants.
Grades:
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Learning Objectives

Students will be able to identify the habitat and characteristics of the leafcutter ant.

Introduction

(5 minutes)
  • Introduce the lesson by displaying a map of the world and pointing out each of the seven continents. Explain that while there are many countries in the world, there are only seven continents. A continent is a large area of land. Ask students if they know which continent they live in.
  • Explain that we live in North America (or insert your continent here) and that today we will be learning about a special animal found in the continent of South America. Tell students that there is a very large area in South America that contains the Amazon Rainforest, which is home to more than half of the creatures on the planet.
  • Tell students that today they will be learning all about a very small animal that calls the Amazon Rainforest home: the leafcutter ant.